Endeavor:
The rocking ship propulsion is a method to propel a ship by utilizing its rocking, enforced by either waves or an artificial oscillating system. This kind of ship propulsion may be used for new ships and for already operated ships. The method is distinguished from the well-known methods, based on the direct utilization of wave motion for a ship propulsion with a foil-type wave propulsion system [1].
The Rocking Propelled ship (RP-ship) is a ship, which utilizes the rocking for self propulsion. An energy of ship's pitching and heaving is converted into the propulsion. Sea waves or an artificial oscillator make a ship to pitch and to heave, providing a mechanical energy necessary to move the ship. Thus, a RP-ship runs less an engine and fuel spending.
In case of a calm sea the RP-ship may have an artificial rocking system or a service engine and a propulsor. In the worst case, it must wait waving. The following categories of issues can use the rocking-propelled ship technology: boating, shipbuilding, shipping, sure remedies, ecology, oceanographic researches, navy etc.
The principle problem addressed in invention.
Pitching, heaving and other kinds of ship rocking are always considered as negative process because they interfere with ships navigation. Usually a fleet settles when a sea runs high. Sometimes the sea becomes dangerous for ships (vessels, crafts, boats and other floating means) and for their crews. During a storm it becomes impossible to help people on board, if the ship has a floating wreck.
The seas energy is pitching and tossing ships and it may be harmful for them. The object of this invention is to find and show the way to use the ship rocking motion for self propulsion. Better of all is if a ship rocking is enforced by sea waves as usually. Reason of this is an abundance of the wave energy in oceans, seas and big lakes.
But if a sea is calm or a ship needs to speed, an artificial rocking system (an oscillator) may be used. For the ordinary ships, rigged by the rocking propulsor (R-propulsor), the problem does not exist. They can use also their issued engines and propulsors.
The energy consideration of a ship rocking.
Each ship is a receiver of seas energy. And as it is well known if a ship receives energy more then the ship is worse. Now all will be just the other way round. That ship will be better because she may go with the R-propulsor faster. A ship receives and loses wave energy at the same time due to self inertia and direct water damping. A part of that wave energy is accumulated by ship, and we may watch it as the rocking. In every time the sea power is spended to overcome dissonance between the ship self rocking process and sea waving so the sea power expenditure can exceed the main engine power a few times.
All known inventions directly try to utilize the said dissonance or relative wave motion for the ship propulsion and do not have perceptible results because an energetic potential of the said dissonance significantly smaller than the total wave energy potential. Besides they use only a part of that dissonance energy and don't provide the proper conditions of operating foils on commercial ship velocities.
For the total wave energy extraction for ship propulsion, here is selected a pendulum ship outline accorded with wave process. The only converter "rocking to propulsion" resists against the waving process but it propels the pendulum type ship.
Division of the principle problem into problems.
To propel a ship by rocking we have to solve three of the most important problems.
The first one is to make a ship be able to receive and to transmit wave energy loss-free.
The second is to use the energy for the ship propulsion. It means the RP-ship should be equipped with a R-propulsor. This is a special device for the conversion of the rocking energy to thrust when R-propulsor is swayed by a ship or an oscillator.
The third one is restriction of the rocking process, which may be harmful for the ship and its crew. It will be solved by a damping the rocking.
Additional problems.
The solving of other problems provide a navigation and an operation of a RP-ship. Among them are:
the invented RP-ship manufacture, PA1 propulsor's maintenance, PA1 renovation of the ordinary ships to RP-ships, PA1 ship steering and maneuvering, PA1 rigging the ship by additional service propulsion and electric power system, PA1 search for the best usage outline, interaction and co-operating with other kinds of ships. PA1 navigation without fuel expenses (the waving has to be present, otherwise during the sea is quiet, a service engine or an oscillator should be used), PA1 an increased seaworthiness and a safety of the navigation, PA1 a reduction of noise, no soil of air and water, PA1 a reduction of ship rocking, PA1 no ship rejection aground by waves because the RP-ship goes easy in a head sea.
The RP-ship benefits.
The immediate results of RP-ships are:
The RP-ship will open a new history of humanity. This includes settlement and living into seas and oceans without polluting them and the air. This is rediscovering of their natural resources. This is the fast intensification of a maritime, safety of a transportation, boating, fishing, researches and etc.